Submitted by Fundación Mi Sangre
Food is part of a web of connections we weave with those who grow, distribute, transport, market and study what we eat. In 2023, Hivos partnered with five local organizations in Ecuador and Colombia. Our goal? To review, analyze, and strengthen the connections that shape our vision of a fair food future. This future relies on sustainable, inclusive, and climate-resilient urban food systems.
By strengthening these connections, we gain perspective and experience the parts of an urban food system that faces major challenges. These challenges include influencing and supporting the development and implementation of public policies, shaping narratives, and increasing economic support for food-focused enterprises.
Climate-resilient urban food systems
Urban Futures, launched in 2023, aims to create inclusive and climate-resilient food systems. It focuses on youth leadership, gender equity, and involving civil society. This initiative began in ten intermediary cities across five countries, which. These cities are experiencing rapid growth. Urban Futures is funded by Fondation Botnar and managed by Hivos, in collaboration with the RUAF Global Partnership and local partners.
Young people play a crucial role in guiding the program. They offer insights to promote inclusive food systems resilient to climate change. Their collaboration helps build inclusive urban food systems, allowing them to voice their priorities, influence decisions, and seize opportunities in the food sector.
From the seed to the cooked food, the great framework of these conversations and this alliance are the relationships we find in the food system and that we inhabit, at multiple scales, on planet Earth. Asking ourselves whom we are connected to through food is the first step to transforming our present. Watch the video about Urban Futures produced by Fundación Mi Sangre.
